No, by a High Fiber Diet I'm not talking about one of those diets going in and out of fashion. What I am trying to say is that if your diet doesn't consist of enough fiber, you could be increasing your chances to get heartburn.

Any food containing high amounts of fiber can help prevent heartburn from occurring. If you currently eat white bread, try substituting it with fiber rich bread such as whole-meal. Eating more fruit, like apples, oranges and berries also helps. I personally like them as a great mid-morning snack, as they fill me up, without giving me heartburn. Also try including more high fiber vegetables in your diet. Broccoli and spinach are good examples.

So how does this work to help prevent heartburn? Well the high concentration of fiber in the food helps to bind the stomach acids together when it reaches the stomach. Generally, if the content of fiber in the food contains more than 5g of fiber per serving, it's considered to be a high fiber food. Next time you're at the supermarket, check out the labels on the products and substitute those lower fiber foods for something a bit higher in fiber content. You may be pleasantly surprised at the effect it has on your heartburn.

There are a few things though that you should be wary of if you want to increase the fiber content in your diet. Firstly, don't change your diet all at once by swapping all foods to high fiber foods. This can be too much for your body to handle in a short space of time, and can result in increased gas and bloating. Increasing your water intake at the same time though, can help counteract these side effects to some extent.

In addition, too much fiber can also have its disadvantages, such as constipation, and in some cases can result in a loss of vitamins such as calcium and magnesium. So you need to balance your diet carefully.

One final thing to remember, as with any major diet changes, you should consult your doctor or a qualified medical practitioner first before making the changes to your diet, to ensure that your medical situation will not be adversely affected.